We Still Try
by emptyonideas
Summary: Zoe's father was gone, her sister was hiding something, and her new friends were getting weirder by the day. She used to escape with books...until her life became stranger than a myth. Isaac/OC
1. Chapter 1

_"It's just you and me now, kid," Zoe's sister told her softly, shifting her car into reverse. Zoe could feel her pain like it was something solid lodged in her throat. She tried to push it down, because Melody wouldn't know how to comfort her, and she didn't want to watch her try._

_"Dad's not coming back," Zoe said, her voice floating above her like a ghost. She imagined that if she looked at her reflection in the window she'd see that someone else had spoken. _

_"Not for a few years," Melody said, fixing her eyes on the road. _

_Mel's voice was clearer now, regaining the hard edge it usually had. Zoe imagined that if she pressed hard on Melody's skin she would find cold, hard metal underneath. _

_Mel sheltered Zoe from most of it, wouldn't even let her into their Dad's trial...Zoe hoped she was stronger than Melody thought she was, but sometimes she wasn't so sure. If you pressed on her skin all she got was a bruise._

_They went a few minutes in silence. Like most people from a strained household, they could handle the quiet, but this time Zoe's mind was buzzing with curiosity. The lines on Mel's face looked drawn in. Zoe almost wished she had a pencil before she realized she wouldn't want to draw her sister this way. _

_"What are we going to do?" Zoe finally asked, pulling her legs underneath her to make herself warmer. Mel's car barely drove, and the heat hadn't worked since 1996._

_"What we've been doing. Getting by. Honestly, jail might be an improvement. At least we don't have to support him anymore." Each word was a punch, not directed at Zoe but making her wince just the same._

_"He worked sometimes," Zoe said, her defense a weak one even to her own ears._

_"Once every four months is not enough. Not when you have a daughter to take care of."_

_"Two daughters," Zoe corrected._

_"I've been taking care of myself for years," Melody said, rolling her eyes. _

_"I'll get a job," Zoe said, looking away from her sister's angular profile to her own in the side mirror. All she saw was shadows and round cheeks, nothing like her sister's thick eyebrows and sharp nose. "I don't want to be a burden."_

_Melody's eyes briefly flitted at her, taking in her slumped body. She would always think of her as a kid. She was so small, even now in the front seat with her legs tucked under her and her face shielded by bangs. Her little sister, with her nose in a book and her mind far away. She always envied her for that._

_"We'll figure it out," Melody said finally, putting her left blinker on. "And kid?"_

_"Yeah?" Zoe asked, looking to Melody's dark gaze._

_"I have a lot of burdens in my life," Melody said, tucking a piece of Zoe's hair behind her ear. "And you are not one of them."_

Zoe remembered the day with almost stunning clarity. She had a mind made to absorb details, down to the last jolt in her stomach.

It was the last day before things really changed. Her last day to have her head in the clouds, to pretend that life might get better without the lurking reminder her father had become. She remembered then, feeling the bumps in the road, tracing her name in the fog on the window, that she couldn't wait to get home and get back to the story she was reading.

* * *

Zoe lived in books until her life became stranger than one.

It started with Kate Argent. Curly haired and sharp tongued, she had Zoe's sister in her clutches before she could blink. That always surprised Zoe, because Melody didn't let anyone in. Ever. She couldn't remember the last time her sister even had a friend, let alone one with so much power over her.

But Kate swayed her somehow, with her fierceness and her take-no-shit attitude, and Zoe watched her sister's skin turn inside out until everyone could see the metal.

Zoe knew something was off when she awoke to gunfire one night. She found her sister in the backyard with Kate, shooting the head off Groll, their garden gnome. His mushroom seat sat forlornly without his red capped head atop of it. They'd laughed when they saw barefoot Zoe emerge with her hair in tangles.

_"Calm down, Zoe, we're just practicing a little," Kate said, slinging an arm around her shoulders._

_"For what?" Zoe asked, resisting the urge to pull away. She hadn't felt comfortable around Kate since Day One._

_"The next guy who breaks your pretty little heart," Kate said with a wink, releasing her._

_"Well the neighbors might not take so kindly to that explanation," Zoe said, crossing her arms and glaring at her sister. No doubt they'd woken her neighbors. _

_"You're right!" Kate said, smiling mischievously. "Let's switch to the crossbow." _

The secrets started soon after. Zoe would wake up in the middle of the night to find her sister's bed completely made. Melody kept her bed like she was in the army, no creases to be seen even when Zoe peered through the darkness.

She found weird books in their apartment. Zoe couldn't pass one without at least peeking inside, but they were full of mythology and pictures that made her insides cold. She'd never even seen Melody touch a book so she knew Kate had to be involved somehow.

_"Why are you reading that?"_

_"It's...interesting," Melody insisted, turning a page in the yellowing volume. _

_"Did Kate give it to you?"_

_"Uh...yeah. She knows a lot about this stuff. To be honest," Melody said, looking around as if she expected Kate to pop up. "I find it a little dull. I prefer when people tell me things. But Kate seemed like she wanted me to find out myself."_

Zoe tried to shrug it off, but she had read the book when her sister was at work. The things stuck in her head, of myths and legends, and monsters and hunters. Why did Kate want Mel to read this? Melody liked movies about war and battles, but she certainly didn't have a penchant for reading about it.

The wounds started next, and this time Zoe could not ignore the weirdness that enveloped her sister. Normal people did not come home with scratches on their arms and mud on their shoes without a good explanation, and Mel did not have one.

_"What the hell is going on?" Zoe asked, her stomach a painful, permanent knot. "Are you in a cult or something?"_

_"No," Melody spat, pulling down her shirtsleeves. "Kate's teaching me to...hunt."_

_Melody never lied to her. She didn't even believe in lying, but Zoe could tell from the hitch in her voice that something was wrong._

_"Hunt what?" Zoe asked, having a hard time picturing her sister killing innocent deer, no matter how stern she could be._

_"Furry things," Melody said, giving her a quick grin before patting her arm. "Don't worry, little sister. That's my job." _

But soon enough, after all the questions and sleepless nights she spent waiting for her sister to get home, Zoe's problem disappeared. Kate went to visit her family in California for an indefinite amount of time. Melody was quieter then, still firm and focused, but not in the same way. She seemed restless, like Kate had given her a taste of adventure that she now couldn't live without.

Zoe went to school. She got a part-time job at a coffee shop. She found friends, and started to feel normal again, without having to worry that her sister was going to accidentally shoot herself after drinking wine with Kate.

But something wasn't right. The myth books piled up. Melody made strange, whispered phone calls. And one night, when Melody was reading the news online, her face drained of all color and her coffee cup shattered on the floor.

"Kate's dead."

Zoe felt guilty for almost feeling relieved. She didn't know if Kate was the leader of a cult or some strange teacher, but there was something odd going on with her that she could feel down to her bones. Melody locked herself away for days, but Zoe held fast to the hope that she would emerge after her grief and they could move on with their lives.

Zoe held her breath when she heard her sister's door open four days later. She braced herself to see a distraught Melody, with messy hair and bloodshot eyes. Instead, she saw her sister, her hair braided to the side, her jaw set firmly, a suitcase in her hand.

"We're going to California."

It had started with Kate...but Zoe soon learned that it did not end with her.

* * *

**I can't watch and like a show so much and not write about it, but I only want to keep going if people read it, so let me know what you think! No Isaac in this one, but he will be here soon, I promise. ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

Zoe's bed didn't smell like home.

Not her real home, anyway. The one with actual photographs on the wall, the one where more than just pizza came from the kitchen, and where her heights were marked on the wall.

In their old apartment, she could still smell the lingering scent of that home. She couldn't place everything, but she could detect her mother's perfume mixed with fabric softener and the wood smell of a fireplace. If she closed her eyes she could almost imagine that nothing had changed.

But now, all she could smell was the smoke from the previous tenant, the next door neighbor's burning food, and the cheap detergent her sister used at the laundry mat. Her old house was gone, twice removed, like a cousin your parents knew but you just nodded stupidly along when they told you you were related.

Zoe had tried to take this gracefully, tried to remember that her sister had taken her in, that she was a burden...but now she was ready to _wallow._

Melody didn't understand things like this, however, so when she saw Zoe laying face down on her bed that smelled like disappointment, she didn't ask what was wrong. She didn't ask how she was doing. She got to the point like she always did, and brought up another thing that Zoe did not want to think about.

"Come on. We've got to sign you up for school."

* * *

"I've talked to the Argents."

Zoe looked at her sister, her eyebrow raised. Although their move was inherently linked to Kate Argent, Melody had been suspiciously quiet about the subject since their arrival in Beacon Hills.

"And?" Zoe asked, tilting her head toward her sister.

"Kate's niece Allison is in your grade. I asked if she would show you around school on your first day."

"That's nice, but it's unnecessary..." Zoe said, trying to brush it off. If she was anything like her aunt, Zoe was alright not knowing her.

"Why? Do you know your way around Beacon Hills High School from that lovely picture you saw on the internet?" Melody asked sarcastically, blinking at Zoe.

"No...but I can find my way. I don't want her to feel obligated to throw a pity party for the new girl."

"Well she was the new girl not long ago. Chris, her father, already told her. She said she'll look for you outside."

"Fantastic," Zoe said, sucking in a cold breath of air.

"I think...there's just one more stop I want to make," Melody said, her eyes flitting to the right side of the road. "We're close, so..."

* * *

Zoe hated cancer. She hated death. She hated bagpipes and crying and that moment when she had a dream and woke up to tell her mother and realized she wasn't there to tell. She hated asking her sister to sign her permission forms, and having no one praise her in a blindingly proud way.

She hated missing people.

And because of all this, she most certainly hated cemeteries.

Melody did too, which is why Zoe didn't understand why she'd chosen this moment to go.

"I just want to see it," Melody said, her breath between a whisper and a choke. "Just want to say good-bye."

Zoe couldn't think of anything to say as Melody slowed the car down. She knew her sister was close to Kate, but Mel didn't even visit their mom's grave. Zoe wanted to shake this stand-in and ask where the hell her sister was, but instead she walked with her on the edge of a field of tombstones, and did what she had done the past week...shut up.

Zoe wasn't sure how Melody knew where Kate's tombstone was, but after a quick scan she seemed to know the right direction. Zoe watched the back of her black boots sink into the mud of the previous nights rain. Her own scuffed sneakers followed suit, her foot swallowed by the imprint of her sister's.

She heard a branch snap and looked up to see someone else there. It was a tall boy with curly hair, who caught her gaze for a second. Feeling like a cemetery was a place for privacy, Zoe averted her eyes.

They stopped near the edge, a statue off to the side, and a forest behind it.

Zoe couldn't help but feel like everything was real now. They had moved into their apartment so quickly she could barely digest what was happening. Everything was smaller than it used to be. Their ramshackle furniture had barely survived the trip. Every time the edge of a chair hit the side of the moving van, Zoe winced, feeling like her own organs were sliding around in her body.

How was your life your life if you weren't used to it? How did you know yourself when everything changed all the time?

Melody would tell her to stop being existential. And sometimes she had to listen or else she'd go crazy.

"Can you give me a minute?"

Zoe was surprised by the request, but managed to nod in compliance. Her sister was already crouching lower to the ground and Zoe felt odd seeing her so vulnerable. She twisted her eyes in the opposite direction and started to walk.

Zoe didn't know where to go except down another row of stones. She tried her hardest not to think of her mother's funeral, but it was hard when pictures kept flashing in her mind.

She distracted herself by reading names and silently calculating ages.

Harold H. Williams, 82...Jacob Lacaster, 74...Rose Astin, 20...That girl was barely older than her. She shuddered and closed her eyes for a second, willing Mel to hurry up. When she opened them, a boy had appeared in her sight.

Her entire body flinched, including her heart. She clutched it as she drew a deep breath and saw the boy smirk as she calmed herself. As her nerves settled back into place, she realized it was the one she'd seen earlier.

"You scared me."

Zoe watched his mouth morph into a strange expression of wonder, his eyes widening.

"You...can see me?"

Zoe paused for a moment, her feet shifting in discomfort. Had she finally gone crazy? She felt icicles in her chest. It certainly seemed likely, considering the events of the past year.

"I'm kidding," he said guiltily, putting his hands up in defense. His voice softened, and Zoe realized he was probably shy. "I'm sorry! I have to remember not everyone has a morbid sense of humor."

Zoe usually did, though, which of course he didn't know. She didn't want to be the gullible, weird girl at the cemetery whose face was splotched red.

"No!" she said, trying to make him feel better. "It's fine, I was just caught up in something else..."

"I'm sorry...it was probably disrespectful. You and your friend are probably visiting someone," he said, gesturing toward the direction Melody was.

Zoe's mind clicked into gear, and she swallowed hard.

"Um...I came alone."

His expression changed again, his eyes narrowing. The two stared at each other for a minute before Zoe caved and smiled.

"Don't make jokes like that in a graveyard," he said, letting out a small laugh.

"You just did!" Zoe grinned, shaking her head.

He chuckled again and nodded, moving closer to her. Zoe was glad he was previously farther away, otherwise she might have lost the ability to speak. He was handsome up close. _Very_ handsome. His eyes were bright but the shadows under them were dark, giving him a look that made her chest tighten.

"I think we're both not being quite so sensitive," Zoe forced herself to say, smiling again.

"Hazards of being a gravedigger," he said, copying her shrug with a half smile. "I'm Isaac by the way."

His voice was lower now that he was close, and she wanted to ask him a million questions about grave digging, but she was cut off.

"Zoe!"

"...is my name," Zoe finished lamely, looking toward her sister who had yelled her name from another row away.

"Let's go!"

Melody's bossiness was not something to be fought against, so Zoe conceded to her wishes.

"I think she wants to go," Zoe said sarcastically, turning back toward Isaac. "Nice to meet you, Ghost."

"You too," he said, nodding with a small smile.

Zoe started walking back toward Melody. She already felt a little lighter, and then she felt guilty for it. She didn't want to be a cliché teenager who felt happy because she met a cute boy.

"Who was that?" Melody asked as Zoe opened the duct taped black door to the car.

"A gravedigger I think," Zoe replied, not wanting to share with her sister yet.

Mel didn't answer. She wasn't one to ask for extraneous details. She'd never cared much about who Zoe liked at school, or who was dating who, or how people met and fell in love.

And she wasn't happy.

The thought hit Zoe suddenly, even though she had always known it under the surface.

Mel would push a day like this from her mind, but she wasn't happy at all. Zoe always looked up to her sister but as more time passed she realized she didn't want to be like her.

So Zoe embraced the lightness, and the thrill of laughing with a stranger. Because if she could make a trip to the cemetery and not leave with a soul crushing feeling in her gut, then maybe other things could change too.

* * *

Ah! I wasn't expecting anyone to read this, so the feedback was a pleasant surprise! Special thanks to BritanyJean, a guest, poorxbrokexcollegexkid, DerekHaleHeart, cheapxperfume, Trisha22, zerogravityganja, and tushmonkey for reviewing! You have given me the inspiration to go on!

How does everyone like it so far?


	3. Chapter 3

Melody could barely remember a time when she wasn't angry.

She had always been a little more frustrated at the world than everyone else. High school was not very good to her. She didn't get along well with most people, and eventually they stopped trying. She just wanted to keep her head down and get the hell out of there and finally figure out what she wanted to do with her life.

But then her mom got sick.

She graduated without anyone at her ceremony besides Zoe, and she grew more bitter by the day. Zoe was the one thing that kept Melody there. She was her fragile little sister who cried every night her mother could be heard coughing her lungs up. She used to sit in her room and read stories to her to calm her down.

_"Don't stay on my account, sweetheart," Melody's mother told her, "Do not let me hold you back. That's not how I want you to remember me."_

But Melody couldn't leave. Not with their dad starting to forget to eat that day, or to pick Zoe up from school. She needed to stick around so things got done. She chose community college and a shitty waitress job so she could live in their house.

She stayed because their dad was not coming back. She didn't know how she knew, but she did somehow, on some level.

And she was right.

The day their mother died, an ironically beautiful, sunny day, their dad as they knew it checked out.

She was done with school by then, with an associate's degree in business. She made up scenarios of fake businesses in her head while her grandpa spoke a eulogy. She subtracted and added imaginary profits while they put her mother in the ground. She did everything she could not to pay attention, because if she did, she would crumple too.

She took a part time job as a receptionist and another as a waitress, found the cheapest apartment available, worked until her eyes were sore from computer screens and her legs hurt from standing. Zoe crept over almost every night in tears and their dad didn't realize once. He lost his job. He lost his car. And although he didn't realize then, he lost his daughters.

Zoe came over one day, stern faced and head high. She was sick of crying, she'd told Melody, sick of their dad. And although she hadn't wished for it, she wouldn't have to see him for a while.

He hadn't paid taxes in years, apparently, he had stopped even before their mother was sick. He was arrested. He was facing jailtime. And he got it.

Melody was exhausted. She was twenty-three years old and raising a sixteen year old. She had to pay bills and fend off rumors about her father. She had to keep her sister safe and work every spare moment she had.

And then she met Kate.

Kate recognized the symptoms of Melody slowing losing her grip. She told her she had a secret, one Mel wouldn't even be able to tell Zoe, at least not for a while. She told her it was probably a bad idea, that her family would be furious she had taught her anything at all.

But she knew, Kate said, she knew that Melody was born for it, the same way she was. They were family that just happened to not share any blood.

She thought she was going crazy at first. Transported into one of Zoe's stupid books. Kate made her find out things on her own, and Melody felt the anxiety rising inside of her. Werewolves? How could they possibly exist? Wasn't the world messed up enough without mythical creatures to add to the list?

But then Kate took her hunting. A long weekend away without work or Zoe or anything to worry about.

And although she was terrified, although she thought her brain might explode because her world was changing, hunting made her feel better. It made her feel like she was doing something important, and let her concentrate on one thing instead of a million.

It was her _thing_. She had always searched for a thing, something that was hers and hers alone, but that was hard to do when she was always pulled so many ways.

Zoe had books and reading. She had art and school. All Melody had was work and bitterness.

But this was it, her new thing. It was scary, but it was exciting, and real, and powerful. She was helping people, even saving them. And importantly, no one else knew. It was _hers, hers, hers._

And Kate might be gone, but damn it if she was going to lose it.

The thought strummed through her mind as she watched the man enter the edge of the dark woods, his claws sliding out.

_We don't just let anyone do this,_ the other hunter told her. His name was Mark, and his eyes were dark and serious, even with a smirk on his lips. _You'll have to prove yourself_.

And she would.

* * *

Melody pulled up in front of the school sign. They were early but people already started to arrive and form groups. They looked impenetrable to Zoe, and her stomach turned. She suddenly wished that she had saved for a new backpack instead of the ratty black one with holes and patches, or that she had bothered combing her hair into anything besides a messy bun.

"Allison has dark, curly hair. She said she'd meet you right by the front doors," Mel told Zoe, nodding toward the school.

Zoe glanced in that direction, not seeing anyone by that description. She sighed and nodded. Melody was going to be late for work if she didn't get out of the car.

"Alright."

Melody fixed Zoe with a look. She could tell she didn't want to go in, so she tried to tease her into a smile.

"Are you nervous? Anxious? Nauseous? Any other 'ous' word?"

"It's nauseated, actually," Zoe corrected softly.

"There's my little nerd," Melody said, patting Zoe on the head. "Now it's my first day too. So unless you want to go to work with me..."

"Don't give me the option," Zoe said, smiling. "You know what I'd pick."

"Out, kid," Melody said, pointing to the door. "Head high."

Zoe nodded and pulled her shirtsleeves over her hands. She pried the door open and cringed as it shut with a loud groan. It wasn't exactly a good first impression to make, coming out of that car, but she let it go and walked toward the front doors.

Not seeing anyone she thought could be Allison, Zoe scanned the campus. People were already looking at her. Not in a mean way, technically, but it made Zoe shrink back just the same. She could do without the attention.

After another minute of biting her lip and wondering if she should just go in herself, she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Hey," a girl fitting Allison's description said, "I'm Allison. You're Zoe, right?"

"What gave it away?" Zoe asked, weakly grinning. "The dread in my eyes?"

"Unfortunately, I'm not a stranger to being the new girl," Allison said with a brilliant smile. "But it's not so bad, I promise."

_Not so bad when you're beautiful and nice_, Zoe thought, but smiled anyway because at least the one person she knew was being kind to her. Her edges were much softer than Kate's were.

"I hope so," Zoe said, taking a deep breath and taking out her schedule. "And please, don't feel obligated to stick around. If you point me in the right direction, I'm sure I can find my way."

"Oh no," Allison said, glancing at her schedule. "We have first and third period together. You're not getting rid of me that easily."

"Thanks," Zoe said, smiling gratefully. "And I'm sorry, by the way. About your aunt. She was always really nice to me."

Allison's smile dropped, but she tried to hide it.

"Thank you," she said, her voice softer. "With everything that went on...well not a lot of people have anything good to say about her."

Zoe flinched, remembering the article she'd looked up online. Apparently, Kate had been behind a serious fire a few years ago. She wasn't sure what was true and what wasn't, but for some reason a few more things made sense.

Zoe didn't know what to say, so she just tried to look as sympathetic as possible. She was spared an awkward conversation change when a girl with red hair bounced up. She pursed pink, glossed lips at Zoe.

"New girl?" she asked, tilting her head.

"This is Zoe," Allison supplied, "Zoe, this is Lydia."

"Nice to meet you," Zoe said, although she wasn't so sure yet.

"We're going to be late," Lydia said, tilting her head toward the school.

Allison nodded and started to follow the high heeled girl inside. Once again, Zoe looked down at her outfit. She never cared that much about clothes, but Allison and Lydia were surprisingly well dressed for teenagers.

"Are you coming New Girl?" Lydia asked, her and Allison looking back at her with questioning eyes.

"Oh," Zoe said, trotting after them. "Coming!"

* * *

Isaac looked down at his food. He'd forgotten to bring more money so the most he could scrounge up was a bag of pretzels from the vending machine. He looked forlornly down the table and noticed Danny shoving a piece of pizza in his mouth. His stomach growled at the sight.

He turned back to his bag of pretzels and flicked them angrily.

"On a diet?"

His head jerked up to see the girl from the cemetery. She was smiling, her bangs falling in her eyes. He felt his stomach jolt a little, surprised that she remembered him.

"Oh...just forgot money," he explained. He could practically feel how awkward he looked.

"Isaac, right?" she asked, putting her tray down and sliding into the seat across from him. His eyes grew wide as she settled in. What was happening here?

"Zoe," she reminded him, although he already knew.

"Are you...staying here?" he asked, watching her squeeze a ketchup packet on her plate.

He regretted his choice of words as her face fell.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Am I in someone's seat? I can look for another table..."

"No! I mean, no, it's fine if you stay...I was just...Wouldn't you rather, or don't you normally eat with your friends? Or a boyfriend?" he asked.

Zoe turned slightly pink, but her voice was even and clear.

"Well I must be losing my touch," Zoe said, sighing in mock depression. "I've been at this school four hours already and _still _no boyfriend."

"Oh, I didn't know you were new," Isaac said, biting his lip. "No wonder you're talking to me."

He turned his tone to teasing. And he was, in a way. Except it was actually half of the truth, because after everything that happened to his family, he had taken to blending into the background.

"Oh, sorry, I haven't learned the social ranks yet," she said with a grin. "Are you an outcast?" she whispered.

"Practically at the bottom of the social pyramid," he said lowly.

"Ouch. Even below him?" she asked, gesturing to a boy who was drinking milk that was sliding from his mouth down the front of his shirt.

"Almost. Maybe a tier above," he conceded.

"That's unfortunate. You had such promise." Zoe shook her head, but she was smiling at her plate. He didn't know why, but he found it endearing.

"I can be deceiving," he said, shrugging, locking eyes with her as she looked up. "You should get away while you can."

"Nah," she said, twisting off the cap of her water. "I'm liking the low level so far."

Isaac's stomach jolted again. He grinned widely as she pushed over a carton of fries.

* * *

Zoe barely knew the way back to their apartment, but by some miracle she recognized their street name. Her classes had been pretty boring, except art. She loved her teacher already, a laid back, heavily bearded man who welcomed her warmly.

The real highlight had been lunch. She was nervous when she heard Allison had a different lunchtime than her. She was ironically even more nervous when she spotted Isaac there. She wasn't sure how old he was when she met him...odd for a high schooler to be a gravedigger, but she wasn't complaining.

He'd been weird at first. Self-deprecating, which she couldn't really understand. She was happy, though, because she was always less shy if someone else was, because she had to compensate.

It was easy to talk to him. Well, as easy as it could be, when she wasn't busy thinking of how perfect he looked. Lunch was over before she knew it, and she couldn't remember smiling so much in a long time.

She found her key in the front pouch of her backpack and jammed it into the key. The door was hard to open so she had to put some shoulder into it, but it gave way in a moment and she stumbled in.

Melody wouldn't be home for a few hours.

They still had some boxes to unpack, but the small living room was already set up. Their gray sofa from their last apartment had made the trip. Collapsing into it gave Zoe flashbacks to sleeping there when she'd left her old house for the night.

She pushed the thought from her head as she zipped open her backpack.

Well, she thought, she should at least eat something before she attempted the stack of work her teachers had given her.

She slipped her sneakers off and walked to their kitchen. It was stuck in a different time period, and the hideous white and brown everywhere made her cringe every time she entered.

She opened the fridge. There wasn't much in there- Melody didn't go grocery shopping often. Soon enough, take-out containers would be jammed inside, but now all there was was a jug of milk, a container of yogurt and a block of cheese.

Zoe groaned and tried the freezer. Sometimes Mel would pick up ice cream for them.

There was nothing except a box. Zoe frowned. Why was there an unmarked cardboard box in the freezer?

She lifted it out, hearing something roll around inside. Feeling a weird sensation in her stomach, Zoe lifted the lid.

She wasn't sure why she had a bad feeling, but it turned out she was right to have it. She screamed and dropped the box. Her heart thudded against her chest as she backed away, knocking into the a chair, finally landing on the carpet of the living room. She felt her stomach heaving, and she turned away quickly.

But it didn't matter that she looked away, because she had already seen. Rolling from the box, a bloody hand, severed at the wrist, with claws extending from the fingernails.

* * *

**Could you guys BE any greater!? The reviews on this are outstanding, thank you all so much! You really make me want to update quickly!**

P.S. I hate writing along the show's storylines. It makes me nervous I'll mess something up, or bore people because they know what happens. So this will be before and then during season 2, but it will sort of be my own plot with small traces of what happens in the show. Hope you like it!


	4. Chapter 4

Zoe had to wait two hours for Melody to get home. Two hours of biting her nails, keeping her head from exploding, and trying to maintain all possible distance from what she'd taken to calling the _deranged hand_.

For an hour, she managed to convince herself that she might be sleeping. She laid on her bed and looked at the water stain on her ceiling, and tried to wake up. A jarring cell phone reminder proved she was awake after all, and that it was her turn to make dinner. _Fat chance_. She probably would never step foot in the kitchen again.

The next hour, she formulated possible theories. Maybe her sister was preparing for some sort of impromptu, not-the-right-time-of-year Halloween party. Maybe she was trying to prank Zoe. Maybe she had found a new species and was documenting it.

All of these theories went out the window when Zoe realized Melody didn't throw parties, or prank people, or have the patience for science.

Zoe went back to her non-home smelling bed in her non-home feeling house and tried to wait without driving herself insane.

When she heard the heavy door thud, she sat up quickly. The movement took the last of the stability from her equilibrium and she fell to the floor when she stood up. Rubbing her knees and cursing herself, she flung open her bedroom door just as Melody's eyes were falling to the kitchen floor.

"What. The hell. Is going on?" Zoe asked slowly, her hands starting to shake as Melody turned to her wide-eyed.

"Shit...I meant to move that."

"Move it where?" Zoe asked, horrified, imagining her sister carrying the anonymous box around town. She shook her head, clearing it. It didn't matter where...it mattered _why. _"Never mind that! What is it? Why do you have it?"

"I suppose you wouldn't just let this go?"

Zoe felt the urge to leap at her sister like an animal, but she suppressed the feeling. Just barely. She still stepped forward, tugging at the end of her shirt, willing her stomach to stop trying to escape her body.

"Let it go!?" Zoe threw her hands in the air. "There's a bloody, clawed hand in the freezer!"

"Quiet!" Melody said, grabbing her arm. "The neighbors will hear you!"

"Then they'll be just as confused as I am!" Zoe hissed, pulling her arm back to herself.

Melody sighed like she was tired of the conversation and walked into the living room.

"It was part of...my hunting. Sort of like initiation?" Melody said, sitting down heavily.

"Hunting? Initiation? Into what?" Zoe asked, her head feeling like it was plunged far beneath water. Her mind flew back to the days when she thought Kate had gotten Melody into some sort of cult.

"Initiation with the hunters," Melody replied.

"Melody...what the hell are you hunting? That hand looks _human_."

"It's not. Well, it is, sometimes I guess."

"You're not helping!" Zoe hadn't sat down yet, probably because her legs were deciding if they wanted to stay and listen or run very far away. Right now, she was kind of bending toward the latter.

"Okay, okay..." Melody said, licking her lips. "You remember those mythology books you saw me reading?"

"Yes."

"Well some things might be closer to the truth than you think."

Zoe took a deep breath, reminding her lungs how to do it.

"What things?" she asked, finding her sister's gaze.

"I'm not good at this part, the explanation..." Melody sighed, rubbing her hand between her eyebrows before pinching her nose. "Sit down...you'll need to."

* * *

Werewolves existed and Zoe still had to attend school. Zoe's sister hunted them and Zoe still had to attend school. Zoe felt like she was dreaming and sick at the same time...and she still had to attend school.

Suffice it to say, she was having a rough time pretending to be normal. The only thing she was thankful for was that Allison and Lydia were so wrapped up in their own conversation that they didn't realize her moving around in a daze.

She did catch the words woods and hospital, and saw a lot of glaring on Lydia's part, but she tried not to listen. She didn't really need another crazy thing to worry about.

Zoe was about to turn into class when she noticed Allison look down at her hands.

"Uh, Zoe?"

"Yeah?"

"You have your chemistry book," Allison said.

"Yeah..."

"We're going to English."

"Oh crap," Zoe said, hitting her forehead. "I'll run back to my locker. See you guys in a second."

Zoe hated being late so she jogged back to her locker, narrowly missing the kids that took the leisurely route. She got a few weird looks, but she reached her locker in record time and spun her combination in before she noticed a familiar shape walking next to her.

"Hey Isaac," she greeted.

She noticed, quietly, that even with her head a blur she could appreciate how beautiful he looked. Did everyone fail to notice this? He was like a sculpture and he seemed to be kind of low key, which didn't make sense to her.

"Oh," he greeted, knocking her from her thoughts. "Hey Zoe."

Zoe collected her novel and threw her chemistry book in with force, already feeling a bad relationship with it. She hitched up the strap of her backpack and shut her locker. She accidentally hit Isaac's arm when she moved, making him wince.

"I'm sorry!" she apologized, noting how much more of a klutz Beacon Hills was making her. "Did that hurt?"

"No," he said, but she could tell he was lying. "Just an old injury."

"Oh," Zoe said, looking around to where students had started to actually file into classrooms. "See you at lunch?" she asked.

"Um, maybe," Isaac said, frowning. "I might practice...I'm on the lacrosse team."

"Oh, does the team practice at lunch sometimes?" she asked, confused.

"No..." Isaac said. "But I need to. So..."

"Okay yeah..." Zoe said, feeling her stomach plummet just a little. The one part of her day she wasn't dreading had suddenly become a worry. Who would she sit with?

"See you around," Isaac said with a nod, walking away from her.

Now worried she would definitely be late, Zoe spun on her heel to walk to class before her locker neighbor peered down at her.

"Do you know Isaac?" the tall girl asked, pushing glasses up her nose as she gathered a rather large textbook.

"We've talked a few times," Zoe said, feeling skeptical to talk to her for some reason.

"He must like you then. He usually keeps to himself."

"Really?"

"Yeah. There are rumors that he gets in fights with his dad a lot. And he's always been kind of depressed. His mom's gone and his brother died in the army."

"Oh, that's awful," Zoe said, thinking of Isaac smiling as he joked around with her. He seemed different, but in a good way...until now at least. Maybe he was having an off day. Or maybe she'd caught him on a rare good day before...either way, she didn't really like it.

"Yeah...just thought you might like to know, since you're new and all."

"Yeah," Zoe said, trying to decide if the girl was trying to gossip or actually be helpful. "Thanks, I guess. See you later."

Zoe ran to class now, barely getting through the doorway before the bell rang. Allison gave her a look of worry which she just shrugged to, sliding into her seat beside Stiles, who she'd met yesterday in chemistry.

He smiled at her, but her mind was gone again. She'd hoped school would distract her a little, but now her mind was spinning with werewolves and hunters and curly haired boys who didn't want to have lunch with her.

* * *

Zoe didn't feel brave enough to enter the lunchroom alone, so she fled to the art room under the guise of wanting to work on a new project. Mr. F, who absolutely hated using full names, welcomed her like an old friend.

"Z! Sit! Use the supplies! Be creative—but don't get crumbs anywhere," he warned, looking at her sandwich and winking.

"I promise I won't," she said, smiling at him before taking a seat at the corner table. There were a few people here working on their free period, but thankfully they didn't pay her much attention. She could use a little while without it.

A half an hour and a half a sandwich later, she was drawing a freaking wolf. Two yellow eyes sat on her paper and she crumpled it in frustration. She couldn't even rid herself of the thoughts when she was clearing her mind.

She left early to get to her next class, then painfully sat through a few more. She had a small embarrassing moment in chemistry when she knocked over a graduated cylinder, but Stiles took the fall. She apologized like crazy but he just shrugged, saying the teacher probably would've found a way to blame him anyway.

Resolved that maybe not everyone here was as crazy as her life was becoming, she actually made it through the day. And then, when she stepped outside, she realized with a painful ache that she'd have to go home and face Melody later.

Sighing, she started to walk. Maybe she should join an extracurricular activity. Anything to take up some of her free time. Perhaps the school had a vampire society she could join, or a unicorn fan club...

She was about to cross the street when she heard her name being called behind her.

"Zoe!"

It was Allison, who was jogging toward her, waving her right arm.

She let her catch up, and looked at her expectantly.

"I'm sorry I haven't really paid attention to you today," Allison said, taking a deep breath. "I know we don't really know each other, but I should have noticed you were kind of out of it."

Zoe gave her a strange look. The way she was phrasing this made it sound like...

"Your sister texted me."

_Great._

Zoe had nearly forgotten that Allison was Kate's niece, which meant she might actually be able to talk to her about...everything. Even her pores sung in relief.

"Trust me, I freaked out when I found out," Allison said, lowering her voice as kids surged past them. "But I thought maybe you could use a little...distraction?"

"How so?" Zoe asked skeptically.

"Shopping," Lydia said, somehow appearing from nowhere.

"I don't really...need anything," Zoe said, suddenly unsure if she wanted to spend the afternoon in a mall with Lydia.

"The fact that you think that only solidifies the need to go," Lydia said, frowning. "We'll start with the backpack. As a general rule, if you're not in sixth grade, you're not pulling it off."

Lydia grabbed her arm and started to walk toward the parking lot. Allison gave her a sympathetic smile and followed them.

Zoe watched Isaac pass them, making momentary eye contact before averting his eyes. She felt herself flush before realizing there really was no need to.

With Lydia chatting in one ear, and Allison in another, she was happy that at least werewolves would be far from her mind for a few hours.

* * *

As usual, your support is overwhelmingly awesome! Sorry this took a week to get out! Next one will be longer (and better!)


	5. Chapter 5

Zoe didn't really realize how rich Lydia must be until she took them into a store where a bag cost more than the laptop she'd saved up months to buy. She'd never cared much about clothes but her backpack was ripping at the seams and the black bag in front of her was pretty beautiful.

She ran her hands over the leather straps and cold, metal buckles. She would have sighed wistfully if Lydia didn't sneak up on her.

"That's cute," she commented, leaning over Zoe to look at the bag. "You should get it."

Zoe let out a sharp laugh, but Lydia didn't return the amusement.

"What? I'm serious," she insisted.

"Oh, yeah...I don't have the money," Zoe said, dropping the bag. "I need to get a job here."

Lydia seemed to accept this response, although Zoe wondered if she could really understand it. Zoe's family had never had much money, but ever since she moved in with Melody, they sort of stripped down to the bare essentials.

"Maybe you can ask your parents for it? Sort of guilt them for moving you here?" Lydia suggested, stopping to inspect a pink bag hanging near them. Zoe couldn't tell if she was being genuine or not, because while she was being nice she always seemed like she wasn't really that concerned with her.

"Oh, I live with my sister," Zoe explained, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. When Lydia didn't say anything, she felt the need to elaborate. "My mom died a few years ago, and my dad's...overseas at the moment."

_Overseas?_ Zoe almost hit herself in the head. But she didn't really want to tell this pretty, slightly intimidating girl that her father was behind bars. She didn't want to be the poor, pathetic new girl, not when she could have a new image in this school...

"Hey." Allison said, thankfully interrupting the conversation. "I'm starving—do you guys want to get something to eat?"

Zoe felt relief flood her as Lydia agreed, hoisting her purse up her arm. Zoe gave one last look at the black leather bag before following.

* * *

Zoe had successfully and covertly dodged Melody last night by getting dinner with Allison and Lydia and then going straight to her schoolwork when she got home. Or at least she thought she was being discreet, until Melody poked her head into Zoe's room before school the next day.

"How long are you going to ignore me for?" Melody asked, leaning against Zoe's doorframe. "I'm busy today, but by tomorrow it might start hurting my feelings..."

"I'm not ignoring you," Zoe said, rolling her eyes and shoving her chemistry book in her backpack. "I had a lot of homework."

"Well you're hardly talking to me," Melody said, crossing her arms. "Look, I know it's scary that these types of things exist—"

"Do you think that's why I'm mad?" Zoe asked, looking up at Melody. "Because werewolves exist?"

"Well you seemed freaked out."

"Well of course I'm freaked out! But it's not like I have to deal with werewolves. I have to deal with _you_."

"I'm sorry that I lied to you," Melody sighed, rubbing her head and pulling a few strands of hair loose. "I know I hate when people lie, but I felt like I had to."

"It's not that either," Zoe said, shaking her head.

"Then what is it?" Melody asked.

_It's that you're the last person I have left and you're putting yourself in danger_, Zoe thought. _It's because you moved us here, away from everything we know, to hunt stupid werewolves._ _It's because you take care of me, but you never really __**think **__about me. _

"What?" Melody asked quietly, looking at Zoe with concern.

"Nothing," Zoe said, pushing past her. "I'm early. I'll walk."

* * *

Zoe had been daydreaming about living somewhere else where her life wasn't so complicated and forgot that she shouldn't exactly do that in a school she'd been at for three days. She ended up going toward the art room instead of her chemistry class, and had to jog all the way there.

With her seemingly always hostile teacher, she did _not_ want to be late for this one.

She slid in the door just as the bell was ringing and saw Allison sending her an apologetic look. She suddenly saw why—because the seat beside her was filled by a dark haired boy. _That must be Scott_, she deduced from yesterday's conversation, where Allison had deemed their relationship as "complicated".

Looking around, Zoe saw Stiles, her previous partner, sitting next to Lydia who was rolling her eyes at something he was saying. All the other people she didn't know had paired up. The only seat left, by some chance of fate, was next to a blue shirted, grim faced Isaac.

Zoe tried to prepare herself, because maybe yesterday wasn't as awkward as she remembered. She really felt more mad at herself that she was so sad of not eating lunch with him, the boy she'd meet three times. She had more pressing issues to deal with, she supposed, but that didn't stop her stomach from turning as she sat down.

"Hey Zoe," Isaac said softly, as Mr. Harris started talking to the class.

"Isaac," she said, nodding at him as she pulled out her green chemistry notebook. Now for a pen...where the hell was her pen?

"Are you alright?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, watching her forcefully sift through her bag.

"I'm fine."

Isaac nodded, biting his lip as he leaned back into his chair. Zoe instantly felt bad at her sharp tone. She remembered what her lockermate had told her yesterday...maybe Isaac's life was as complicated as hers was, and she shouldn't really hold it against him.

"We'll be doing a partner lab today, so pray that you are sitting next to someone as competent as you are," Mr. Harris said, walking up the rows. "Or in some of your cases, simply _awake_ would be an improvement."

He poked a rather large boy in the back who had his head in his hands and the class chuckled as he sputtered awake.

Mr. Harris rolled his eyes.

"Instructions are in front of you."

"So uh, I'll set up the first part. Do you want to get the supplies?" Zoe asked, studying the worksheet and trying to focus on it.

"Sure," Isaac said, his chair screeching as he rose from his seat to walk to the front of the room.

The next ten minutes passed in near silence. Zoe was glad the room was lively at least, with the occasional sarcastic quip from Mr. Harris, or the tension between them would have been even more awkward.

"Um, I think I did something bad," Isaac said, staring at his graduated cylinder as the liquid rose at an alarming rate.

Zoe laughed. She was surprised at how loud it came out and covered her mouth as Isaac's mix of...whatever he'd used bubbled and started overflowing over the sides.

"Shush!" Isaac said in a panic, "Don't let Mr. Harris see."

He tried to stem the flow with a tissue he pulled from his pocket, but realized that was a bad idea when it crumpled in his hand.

"Our first example of what _not_ to do, class," Mr. Harris said from behind them, pushing up his glasses as he sighed.

Isaac looked sheepish as the cylinder stopped overflowing and the bubbles fizzled down. Zoe supposed she should have been embarrassed, but she smiled anyway as Mr. Harris shuffled away.

Zoe went to get paper towels from the back of the classroom, the brown, scratchy kind that schools always had. They weren't exactly absorbent, but they'd have to do.

Isaac smiled as she tried to help him mop up the mess, making sure it didn't reach any of their notebooks.

"Sorry about that," Isaac said.

"It's okay. I broke a graduated cylinder yesterday. Let's just say I knew this would be a bad class for me."

Isaac smiled again as they threw out their mess and tried to salvage what was left of their experiment. They were just starting to set up again when Isaac turned to her, his blue eyes bright.

"So, uh...will you be at lunch today?" Isaac asked, scratching the back of his neck.

Zoe couldn't stop the smile, even though she knew she was being painfully obvious, and probably blushing too.

"Yes."

"Okay," Isaac said, bowing his head and looking back at their sheet. "Good."

* * *

Zoe forgot how unappetizing her lunch looked when she saw Isaac wave at her. Sure, she felt a little pathetic for being so excited about the next hour, but after everything that happened to her...she didn't feel like she _clicked_ with a lot of people, and something about Isaac was...easy.

She took the seat across from him and put her book beside her tray. She'd taken it just in case he'd had to practice again, but was for once glad she wouldn't have time to read.

"Hi," Isaac said, opening his straw wrapper. His smile was private, she decided, one he didn't give a lot of people. Her ribcage hurt at the thought.

"I just wanted to say...I'm sorry I was kind of weird yesterday," Isaac said, not looking at her. "I was in a bad mood and I just didn't want to be around anyone."

"It's fine," Zoe assured.

Zoe felt a short pang of regret that 'around anyone' included her before realizing she'd been in the exact same state of mind, and kind of still was. She wondered if Isaac's mood had anything to do with his dad, but she felt like it was too soon to ask...who knows what part of the rumors were true anyway.

"Are you really okay?" Isaac asked, breaking her trance. "You seem distracted."

"Honestly, something really weird happened at home," Zoe admitted. "And I can't wrap my head around it."

"That's a little...vague," Isaac said, raising an eyebrow. "Did you fight with your parents?"

"No, I live with my sister. It's..." Zoe trailed off, not wanting to say too much. "...her secret to tell," she finished lamely. "But now that I know, it's hard to get out of my head."

Zoe thought back to the text she'd gotten from Melody when she got to school.

_I get off early on Fridays. Let's get dinner tonight._

"I'm having a hard time being around her," Zoe said, thinking of hiding in her room last night. "I don't even really want to go home after school."

Isaac flushed for a moment, and she was afraid she was being too rambl-y and self confess-y for being such new friends. But Isaac didn't seem to be bothered by that, and nodded along.

"I know how that feels," he said, quietly, mashing up his food with a fork.

"Where can you go around here if you don't want to go home?" Zoe asked thoughtfully, pushing her food around too.

Isaac took a breath and tapped his chin.

"The movies? A park or something?" Isaac peered at the _The Hobbit_ beside her tray. "The book store?"

"That sounds good," Zoe said, a jolt of nervousness running through her as she prepared herself for what she was about to say. "Could you show me where they are?"

Isaac's mouth opened for a moment before he looked up at her.

"Yeah...yeah, I could do that," he said, his mouth curving into a smile.

Zoe could feel her nerves intensify even though he had said yes. She hadn't really thought it through that this meant they'd be spending time together. Alone, without a lunchroom full of people. She tried to ease the conversation back to banter so she'd stop worrying.

"I should warn you that to combat the weirdness at home," Zoe told him, "I can only allow the most normal of subjects to be discussed today."

"Zoe Mayer," he said, pushing up his shirtsleeves. "We will talk about movies and music and school, and if we're feeling daring..._the weather_."

This was the Isaac she liked, with the confidence and the smile...and she cursed herself for feeling so excited that she'd prodded it out of him.

"You really know how to bore the socks off a girl," Zoe said, smiling despite every strange thing that had occurred to her in the last twenty-four hours.

"I've had a lot of experience," Isaac said, half joking.

And it was then, with a half deprecating smile and bow of the head that Zoe realized she wasn't helping Isaac at all, but the other way around...and she could already sense she was a goner.

* * *

Thank you to EVERYONE who reads and reviews! Let me know how you like Zisaac!


	6. Chapter 6

Melody kicked her shoes off in the car. The bank had already become boring, and it had only been a few days. Maybe being a teller and having to force politeness wasn't the best job she could've chosen for herself.

She sighed as she put the key in the ignition. She was planning on picking up Zoe and taking her to dinner but she'd gotten a text saying she was going out with a friend. _Again_. Zoe had never been this social before, and Melody knew it was at least in part so she could ignore her.

Zoe never held onto anger. Melody always envied her for that. But the look in her eyes this morning...she'd never blown Melody off like that. She just hoped that this would end soon, because if she wasn't talking to Zoe, she didn't have many other people to turn to.

She thought back to the night before, leaving her empty apartment to take a visit to the Argents.

_Melody pushed the box on the table, not bothering to tell them that it had quite a journey from forest to freezer to kitchen floor, accompanied by Zoe's screaming in between. Kate's brother Chris stood in the corner, looking serious, but the man in front of her smiled as he peered inside. _

_"Well this is as good proof as any. Taking off a limb isn't easy if you have a sensitive stomach," Gerard said, his smile turning to a smirk as he looked at her. "My daughter wasn't supposed to recruit strangers, but at least you're capable." _

_The man beside him, who introduced himself as Mark, gave her an appraising look._

_"Real deal," he said with a wink. "Wasn't sure if you had it in you."_

_"You don't even know me," Melody said, glaring at him. "Kate taught me everything she knew."_

_"Yeah, even her attitude," Mark said, laughing. His teeth shone in the dim light, contrasting with his tan skin and dark beard. _

_"And did she teach you the code?"_

_Melody looked over to Chris Argent, who hadn't said a word to her until now. He moved from the shadows toward them, fixing his cold eyes on her. _

_"Did she teach you that we kill werewolves who have killed others, not innocent people? Did you know anything about him? Because Kate didn't seem to grasp these aspects," Chris said, taking a deep breath and locking eyes with her. _

_"Times have changed," Gerard said, closing the box between them. "We've talked about this, and we've decided the code isn't our first priority."_

_For the first time, Melody felt a bit unsure about this. The justification she told herself was an eye for an eye. It made sense to her. It was only logical to help reduce the threat of people who were hurting others. _

_She could feel the tension between the men. Mark rolled his eyes, but she felt more uneasy than anything, and decided to speak. _

_"He bit someone in Nevada, and killed his ex-wife," Melody said, stepping toward Chris. "I know the code."_

_Gerard frowned, but Chris gave her a curt nod. _

_"Fine. We'll call you if we need you," Chris said before turning on his heel and walking up the stairs. _

_Melody took that as her cue to leave, and she nodded at the other men before turning to follow Chris. She was almost at the stairs when a hand caught her arm, forcing her to turn back._

_"You can feel free to call me anytime," Mark said, tucking a business card in her hand. "Hunting business or...anything else you might want."_

_"Thanks," she said flatly, rolling her eyes._

_She felt his smirk boring into her back as she turned around and walked up the stairs. _

Well, she wasn't sure about him. His smirk annoyed her, and the overconfidence was off-putting, but no one had really bothered trying to flirt with her in years. Her personality didn't really allow for it...but the thought of going home to her half-unpacked apartment to eat dinner alone and wait for Zoe didn't seem like a good plan.

She sighed and dug in her cup holder for his card.

* * *

"Did I mention I kind of like bookstores? Because I do. I really do," Zoe sighed, running her hands over the spines.

"I think you may have mentioned that, Miss Librarian," he said, watching her read the titles with a tilted head.

"Sorry, Mr. Gravedigger," she said, looking up at him. "What places do you like?"

Isaac thought for a second. He wasn't really a reader. Libraries and bookstores were always full of people being so quiet. He supposed it should have been peaceful, but he didn't really think so...

"Louder ones," he answered softly, staring at the shelf in front of him_. Ones that don't remind me of quiet houses. Ones that don't remind me of quiet, desperate places. _

Isaac tried to shake the thought from his mind, but his fingers were already curling. He didn't want to scare Zoe off. But it was just too hard, because when his mind drifted to that place, he got caught in quicksand, and it usually ended up pulling him under.

"We'll go to a music store after this," Zoe said, bumping his elbow as she continued down an aisle. "You can try out the drums and crash the cymbals."

Isaac felt his stomach pull from her words._ After this_. She'd said it nonchalantly, like it was everyday they hung out. Like they always did a lot of things together, like it was no big deal that they'd go somewhere else, like she didn't mind being with him.

He stopped himself before he realized he was sounding pathetic. She was just a girl he ate lunch with, the new girl who knew nobody so was hanging out with him. Hell, he saw her with Allison Argent and Lydia Martin yesterday. He didn't think their friendship would be lasting too long if she kept hanging around people like that. Why would she want to, after all, when he was jumpy and moody half the time? It wouldn't be a good deal on her end.

But it was hard to even think that as her as she moved around in bliss, pushing her bangs from her eyes when she stooped to look down. It was hard not to smile back at her when she turned around to check where he was.

"What are you waiting for?" she asked, realizing he wasn't moving.

"Something interesting to happen," he called back with a grin. "I might be here for a while, then."

She walked back with a huff and took his arm with a glare, pulling him forward. As he felt the slight pressure on his elbow and the stir of his chest, among other places, he grimly realized it might actually be harder to be her friend than not at all.

_But if this is fleeting,_ he thought, _and it definitely is, than I might as well embrace it before she realizes._

* * *

Walking with Isaac was how Zoe imagined it would be to walk next to someone on fire. She wasn't exactly engulfed, but she was sweating and hyper aware of all of her warm limbs. Isaac seemed blissfully unaware that he was in flames.

Despite this, she liked to think she was doing a good job smothering the fact that her insides were trying to become her outsides. Isaac didn't seem to notice, at least, as he walked next to her and teased her every time she sighed wistfully for a book.

"Are you going to buy any of them?" he inquired, watching her run her hand over the spine of a purple and gold edition of Jane Austen novels.

"I need to get a job first," she told him. "Melody doesn't really appreciate when I use the grocery money for books."

Isaac smiled, moving closer next to her. Her eyes moved back down to the table, a solid wood one with small, neat piles.

"You live with just your sister?" he asked. He saw her face twist and backtracked. "Oh, shit. I forgot...the reason we came is because you were having problems with her. I'm sorry, ignore me please."

"No, no it's okay," Zoe said, shaking her head. "It's um, just us. My mom died a few years ago," she said, keeping her eyes on the table. Hazards of a new school that she'd have to tell everyone this story. "And my dad's...doing business in another country. For a while."

_Great_, she thought, _you're lying to him. But you already lied to Lydia so now you have to keep it up._

"Really? What does he do?"

Zoe felt panic lodge in her throat. She tried to calmly think of something plausible but doctors without borders was the only thing coming to her mind, and that seemed like too much of a stretch. What else? Business...business in imports? Banks? What else did people business in?

"Something with...stocks," she finally answered lamely, shrugging her shoulders. "You live with your dad?"

"Uh, yeah," Isaac said, nodding his head, ignoring her gaze.

"What's he like?" Zoe asked softly, instantly feeling guilty because she was fueling her own curiosity after just evading his questions.

"Oh, you know…" he trailed off. "Regular. Hey, have you read this?"

Zoe realized they were both deflectors. At least they would get along, having similar defense mechanisms. She decided not to broach the subject again and instead looked at the book cover, even though she knew it was just a way to change the subject.

"Yeah, the beginning was boring but the end was good."

Isaac put it down and picked up _The Almost Moon_. His fingers were pale against the purple. The tones reminded her of the shadows under his eyes that should have been unattractive but definitely were not.

"What about this one?"

"I didn't really like it," she said, scanning the table. "But this one..." Zoe said, picking up _Water for Elephants. _ "...is good. You should try it."

"I'm more of a comic book guy." Isaac smiled and shook his head. "How do you read so much?"

"Can I tell you a secret?" she asked. She leaned toward him and tried to ignore the fact that his mouth was perfect when it curved upward and pretty much the rest of the time too.

"What?"

"I have no life," she whispered.

Isaac laughed, drawing the attention of a nearby reader. The sharp nosed girl glared at him and he smiled at her, causing her to turn pink and shove her nose back in the book. Isaac shrugged and turned back to her.

"Maybe we should get out of here. I'm getting mean looks and you're on the verge of drooling."

This time, Zoe laughed.

"Lead the way, tour guide," she said, nodding toward the direction of the door.

* * *

"So how did I do?" Isaac asked. "Did we have a successful, avoid-confrontation day?"

Zoe looked up at him, his curls slightly out of place as they exited the coffee shop. She took a sip of her hot chocolate and pretended to think.

"It had its moments," Zoe conceded, biting her lip.

Isaac smiled, but Zoe thought there was something off about it. He drifted in between jokes and seriousness so Zoe wasn't sure if he knew she was kidding. She felt the need to rectify it just in case.

"Can I tell you another secret?" she asked, looking up at him as he took a drink of his own.

"What?" he asked with a small smile.

"I tend to understate things," she said, "It's my sense of humor. So really, the more I understate, the better it is."

Isaac made a 'huh' noise and scratched his chin with his free hand.

"So if you said it was just alright?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It was great," Zoe insisted.

Isaac smiled again and Zoe was thankful he didn't find her extremely weird. Sometimes she felt too vulnerable when she was sincere, and she hated herself for it.

Isaac opened his mouth for a moment before his eyes froze. Zoe followed his gaze to a bank's electronic sign, which was now flashing the time and temperature in neon green.

"Oh shit," Isaac breathed. "I didn't realize what time it was."

"Hot date later?" Zoe asked, immediately wishing she didn't say it. But she didn't have to worry, it seemed, because Isaac was now completely distracted.

"I have to get home for dinner or my dad will..." Isaac trailed off. "Be mad."

Zoe felt tingles of anger push at her fingertips. Isaac's whole demeanor had changed, from his posture to his eyes. Whatever was going on must be bad, but she didn't feel like a few days of knowing him gave her enough reason to ask.

"Okay," she said softly, "Let's go back."

They walked quickly now. Isaac had ridden his bike to school but left it there when he realized she'd have to walk. She wasn't great with direction, but it would probably take them a little while to get back.

The walk was tense and awkward, and Zoe didn't really understand why. Isaac had thrown out his drink without finishing it and was moving so fast that Zoe had to jog to keep up. She eventually threw out her drink too and tried to just keep pace.

Isaac only noticed this once, and slowed for a moment before getting lost in his thoughts again. Zoe thought of making a joke but thought of her friend Carrie who'd once told her she was "Queen of the Bad Timing" jokes and shut her mouth.

When they came in sight of the school, Zoe breathed a sigh of relief. She could get home from here, at least, and go at a reasonable speed.

"Thanks for coming with me," Zoe voiced, unsure if Isaac would even respond to her.

As he grabbed his bike, Isaac seemed to pull back from his strange mood for a second when he heard her. He shook his head before he bent slightly toward her, making her feel all the nerves in her body. She cursed herself for feeling that way even after their strange, rushed walk back.

"Can I tell _you _a secret?" he asked.

"S-Sure," she stuttered, trying not to stare at his eyelashes or his skin or his mouth or his face.

"I had a barely tolerable time," he whispered.

She shoved him just as he pulled away, watching him smile for just a second before he waved good-bye and started to ride away.

* * *

**So these are kind of the build-up chapters. I wanted them to have a history before Isaac changed, so these might be a little fluffy-ish. If you're into that, yay, if you like a mix, yay again, if you want action, stick around. ;)**


	7. Chapter 7

Zoe lifted her eyes from her chemistry homework. She'd chosen the desk seat and was facing Allison who was on her bed, her feet in the air behind her. Allison was working on the first problem and Zoe was supposed to be doing the second, but after passing Allison's father and grandpa on the way upstairs, her skin was tingling with curiosity.

"So...I have a question," Zoe said, resisting the urge to chew on the end of her pencil.

"Okay, about number two?" Allison asked, looking up at her.

"No, not about chemistry," Zoe said, slowly closing her book. "About...hunting."

Allison's mouth opened for a moment before she smiled slightly. Hoisting herself upward, she moved into a sitting position with her legs crossed.

"You can't ask your sister?" Allison asked, more curious than pointed, tilting her head to the side.

"We're not really talking that much lately," Zoe said, scratching her neck. She was starting to regret asking.

"Okay," Allison said, accepting this without prodding for answers. "What do you want to know?"

Zoe's mind filled with possibilities. She'd thought about this so much lately, she didn't know where to begin. Her mind flashed between weapons, claws, and shady forests. She didn't know what was most important, so she settled with an obvious one.

"Does it only happen with a full moon?"

"No." Allison shook her head. "When they learn to control it, they can do it anytime. But if they're new wolves, the moon can drive them crazy."

"What do they look like?" Zoe asked. Right now, she could only picture what was in movies. "Do they look like what people think? Or different? Sorry, I know that's stupid—"

"—No, it's fine," Allison chuckled. "Well, obviously as humans you can't really tell. But when they change, their face kind of morphs...they have claws, sharp teeth, and their eyes glow."

"So they don't fully turn into a wolf?"

"No, not usually," Allison said, shaking her head. "Just like...human, with added fur and all their abilities. Strength, and healing, stuff like that."

"That doesn't sound like they're that bad," Zoe frowned, thinking of her sister shooting down a furry man.

"Until they rip someone's throat out," Allison said harshly.

Zoe's stomach twisted in surprise as the abrupt change in tone. It took her a moment to realize that Allison's aunt had been killed by a werewolf...and her family had been doing this for ages. Probably not the right person to try to debate with.

"Sorry," Zoe said, biting her lip and looking at her textbook. "I'm just trying to get a sense of it."

"It's okay." Her voice softened. "I'm sorry. Do you have any other questions?"

Zoe did, but she was now afraid to ask them. Allison's family did this for a living. She wasn't going to throw them under the bus because Zoe had concerns for her sister's status as a killer, or because she was scared that it was too dangerous for them to be involved in.

"No," Zoe said, shaking her head. "Unfortunately we'll have to go back to chemistry."

Allison laughed a little, and Zoe was glad that at least she hadn't ruined the mood completely. It was only Saturday morning, and she had the rest of the weekend to try to avoid home as much as possible.

"You have to make up for your failed experiment in class the other day," Allison said. "So let's try to get them all right."

* * *

Zoe had long ago decided that gym class was the worst class, but it was even more true when she had her lockermate as her partner. She'd learned that her tall, bespectacled school neighbor was called Jessica. She'd also learned that Jessica was adopted, had a suspicious mole on her back, knew a story about everyone in school, and did not possess a quiet bone in her body.

"You've got to keep your arm straight, it will help your aim," Jessica called to her as Zoe practiced serving. "You're gonna hit me!"

_If I'm lucky_, thought Zoe, but instead of answering just served again.

"You're worse than Amy! Once, she hit the teacher right in the head with a hockey puck, he had a bruised eye for weeks!"

Zoe chose to ignore that too.

Thankfully, their partner drills only lasted for a few minutes before progressing into full out games. As they set up on the volleyball court, Zoe tried to decide which was worse. She had still failed to distinguish a winner when the game started.

Allison was on the opposite team with Scott. The only person she knew on her team was Jessica, fortunately at least ten feet away, and Stiles.

"Please cover me if the ball comes in my general direction," she said to him nervously.

"I am a natural athlete, so you don't have to worry much," Stiles said, winking back at her.

Zoe smiled and turned to face the net, seeing Scott roll his eyes. Had he heard what Stiles had said? She quickly shook her head...that was impossible. They weren't talking that loudly.

Zoe didn't have much time to prepare before Allison served the ball.

It went to Stiles, who hit it upward toward Zoe, whose stomach flipped as she grazed it with her hand before sending it out of bounds. Sheepishly, she gave a guilty look to her teammates. She hated being the worst one. It was why she preferred libraries and art rooms.

"You should have set that one, Zoe! We can do this!"

Stupid Jessica.

Zoe's ears turned red against her will. She turned back and crouched a little, pretending she knew how to get into position. She focused her energy on their game despite the screech of sneakers on the floor and loud calls of their classmates.

Allison served again, while Zoe said silent prayers that it wouldn't come to her. There were enough people that she wouldn't have to touch it, right?

It first went to a dark haired, short boy in the back who bumped it toward Jessica, who bumped it high in the air...toward Zoe.

She could do this. She put her hands in a triangle and pushed the ball upward...right over the net and into the hands of Jackson, resident asshole. Allison had told her Lydia had been pretty broken up about their split, and she couldn't really imagine why as he slammed the ball down. It landed so close to her foot, she was sure he would have broken it if she was an inch to the left.

"Well, there goes our chances," Jessica sighed.

"Good hit," Stiles encouraged, clapping her back.

Zoe was happy she hit it at all, honestly. She smiled at Stiles and ignored Chatty Bitch.

Allison bounced the ball a few times. Her eyes narrowed in concentration, and as the resounding slap hit, the ball soared. This time, it was heading for Jessica.

It was hit hard enough that she was afraid to touch it, but she wasn't quick enough to move. As she put her hands up in defense, the ball found the side of her head, knocking her glasses to the ground.

Zoe grinned and looked at Allison, who shrugged her shoulders.

"Sorry!"

Jessica's normal bubbliness disappeared as she scrambled for her glasses and forcefully rolled the ball back the other way.

They didn't win the game, but if Zoe replayed that moment in her head, it was like they did.

* * *

Zoe now worried for her ears and her sanity as she headed to her locker at the end of the day. She staked out the situation quietly.

She caught a few odd looks when she peered around the corner. Thankfully, Jessica had ensnared someone else in conversation. Zoe could hear her voice from where she stood, talking about a party that was going on later in the week.

"What are you looking at?"

Zoe jumped as the voice next to her spoke. She turned to see Isaac with a smile hanging from his lips, his mouth parted just enough to see the tops of his teeth.

"I'm hiding," Zoe whispered, pulling him back so Jessica wouldn't see them near the corner.

"From who?" Isaac laughed.

"Jessica," Zoe said, jabbing a finger in her direction.

"Making enemies already?" he teased, looking down at her in amusement.

"I work quickly," she grumbled. "I'll tell you about Volleyball Nazi tomorrow at lunch."

Zoe ignored the feeling tidal waves her body got in which she now termed Isaac-proximity and listened for the sound of Jessica's voice. She wanted to get to her locker sometime today.

"In a rush to get home?"

"No...not at all," Zoe said. In truth, she wanted to take her time, but she'd rather hang around somewhere beside the crowded hallway.

"How are things going with your sister?" Isaac asked, his voice moving from teasing to concern.

"Alright," Zoe shrugged, avoiding his eyes. "I'm still kind of trying to get out a lot. Any chance you'd want to come again?"

"I would, but I have lacrosse practice," Isaac said, biting his lip.

"Oh." Zoe ducked her head. "Gotta keep...active," she finished, shaking her head at her lameness.

"Maybe you should just try to go home?" Isaac asked, his voice with a lilt of worry. "You seem kind of...anxious, and maybe it would help to talk to your sister."

It was funny, because if anyone else had said it to her, Zoe would have probably told them to mind their own business. But coming from Isaac it just felt like good advice, something she had known in her own mind but was too stubborn to admit.

"Yeah, probably," Zoe sulked quietly. "Thanks, Jiminy Cricket."

"Huh?"

Zoe peered up at Isaac, who was raising his eyebrows at her.

"Cause you were acting like my conscience," Zoe explained. His expression remained twisted in confusion. "Like the cricket from Pinocchio?"

"Oh, sure," Isaac said, patting her on the head. "The cricket."

"People know that, Lahey," she insisted. "It's a famous movie."

"I haven't seen it since I was three," he admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

"Well maybe you should revisit it, it's a classic."

"Uh-huh," Isaac said, smiling widely.

"Weren't you getting to lacrosse practice?" she said with a glare, shooing her hand at him.

"Weren't you getting to your locker?" he teased, starting to walk backward.

"Bye, Lahey."

"See you tomorrow, Zo," he said, smiling one last time before turning around.

She should have been irritated, but her heart was pounding. _Zo, Zo, Zo_. He had called her a nickname, and he had known about her problems, and he had joked around with her.

So maybe her sister hunted werewolves and her friend's family did too, and her lockernate was a bitch, and she sucked at gym, but her life was finally interesting and maybe Beacon Hills was not all that bad after all.

* * *

Zoe stayed afterschool in the art room until she knew Melody would be home. With some trepidation, she dug through her bag for her keys and inserted them into the lock. Shouldering her way in, she saw Melody's black coat slung on the couch.

She took a deep breath, walking toward the kitchen.

Melody was sifting through the mail that was sprawled across the kitchen table. How they already had so much after being here so short of a time period, Zoe didn't know. She suspected most of it was junk.

Melody was inspecting a white card, though, and looked up in surprise when Zoe walked in. They had hardly been in the same room in a few days.

"Anything good?" Zoe asked.

It was simple, but Melody would understand the truce when she heard it. Zoe knew she got it when she hid her smile.

"Big news," Melody said flatly. "Aunt Martha's getting married again."

"You're lying," Zoe said, dropping her head in surprise.

"Nope. Number...four?"

"Five!" Zoe said, throwing her hands in the air. Her aunt was a little...adventurous, to say the least. She was somewhere in Spain now, from what her last postcard had revealed.

"Five?" Melody asked, unsure. "There was Creepy electrician, boring car salesman, spitty secretary..."

"You're forgetting balding, pretentious aspiring writer," Zoe reminded her, thinking of the shiny headed man they'd had to suffer through a few awkward dinners with. She almost shivered at the thought.

"Oh god," Melody groaned, shaking her head. "Remember when he read that poem at Thanksgiving?"

Zoe dissolved into laughter at the memory, leaning against one of the hideous cabinets. Melody soon joined her.

When they both calmed down, Zoe took a few deep breaths and bit her lip. Melody threw the invitation on the table.

"Do you want to go get a pizza?"

"Sure," Zoe agreed, feeling the tension lift from her shoulders. She hadn't even known she was carrying it until she straightened out.

* * *

Melody's car made the telltale noise of exhaustion as they wove through the streets. Zoe didn't know how Mel knew where she was going, but it seemed to be kind of far...she hoped it was good. Her stomach rumbled at the thought of dinner after a particularly bad lunch.

She kept her eyes on the trees, happy that the silence wasn't awkward anymore. Sure, they had some issues to work out, but maybe if they could actually talk about them her life could maintain some sort of weird, supernatural stability.

She never thought she'd think those words.

Melody's car continued to rumble onward as the radio switched to a song Zoe loved.

"Hey remember when—"

Zoe was cut off by a large mass leaping into the road. Her heart flew directly toward the front of her chest, slamming into it as Melody hit the brakes. Melody swerved the car to the left as Zoe screamed, unable to help herself as the huge shadow landed on the car's hood.

Her breathing rocked her whole body as she realized what it was.

Allison's description had been very accurate, down the glowing eyes.

* * *

**Either the last one sucked or posting on Mondays is a bad idea. **

**Anyone like this one?**


	8. Chapter 8

If she was drawing this, his eyes were Prismacolor Canary Yellow mixed with Sand.

Melody immediately shifted the car in reverse, the tires screeching as they backed up. Zoe's head hit the back of the seat as the werewolf shifted off the hood of the car, growling as he did so. Melody's car hadn't seen so much sudden movement in years and didn't back up as quickly or as far as Zoe would have liked before Melody started rummaging under her seat.

Zoe couldn't even look at her. Her chest was suspended above her body, but she couldn't move. Her eyes were glued on the werewolf. He was tall, over six feet, and muscular. His hair stuck in all directions, his eyes were glowing, his claws were out. Zoe's gaze drifted to his hands, wondering if they were more animal than human...

She didn't know she could be more surprised, but now her heart stopped completely.

His left sleeve was rolled up and instead of a clawed forearm that would cause her to ripple with fear, there was only an empty space. Zoe's mind clicked in revolting realization.

"Please tell me I haven't seen the hand that matches that one," she cried, watching the werewolf watch them. He wasn't moving yet and Zoe wasn't sure if that was better or worse.

Melody was now holding something in her hand as she looked toward the werewolf.

"Shit."

"Melody!" Zoe called, thinking of the hand rolling from her freezer. It was bad enough that it had happened, but now she was going to be killed by what was attached to that ragged limb.

Her eyes glazed over. Prismacolor Dark Umber. Maybe a little bit of Burnt Ochre.

"I thought he was dead," Melody said, shaking her head frantically. For once, Zoe heard fear in her voice. "I left him, he must have healed—"

But she didn't say anything else because the werewolf was moving now. Melody fully extracted her weapons. She held one in each hand and put another in Zoe's. The weight felt foreign, but she didn't move it.

"This is the part in the novel where something bad happens," Zoe said, her voice coming out calmer than she expected. "Can't we just drive away?"

"This isn't a book, Zoe." Melody scowled, her eyes locked on the werewolf.

This was it. He had crouched, letting out a growl that Zoe felt reverberate in her bones. Why the hell wasn't this road busier? Where was everyone? And did it have to be getting dark on top of everything?

"Don't get out of the car."

Zoe's hand wrapped around the taser that Melody had left in her lap.

* * *

_Zoe stared at her mother in the bed, her dark hair thin and wispy, her breath rattling in her hollow throat. _

_Anna Mayer, worked at Sugar and Spice Bakery on Mill Street. One sister, two daughters, one husband, father in a nursery home. Her favorite color was yellow and she always smelled like vanilla. _

_She used to talk all the time about exotic vacations and opening her own bakery and seeing the wonders of the world but she spent her money on a new car and Melody's braces and Zoe's glasses and then she got sick and forgot about her dreams for a while. _

_Zoe wished she had time to take her mother to Paris. To tour the Coliseum with her, to take her on the London Eye, or on a safari in Africa. Her mother never got to travel and now she never would._

_Anna Mayer had given her life to her family and now her life was ending and they had nothing to give back to her._

_It was near the end now. The coughing grew worse, and no matter how hard she tried, Zoe couldn't help but cringe with every hack. It was always a fresh reminder of the ticking clock, one that Zoe couldn't push away even when she was sleeping. _

_Her mother brushed Zoe's hair from her eyes, but a few stubborn pieces had already fallen back when she brought her bony hand back to her face._

_"I know you don't like talking about it," her mother began slowly, her voice a whisper of what it used to be. "But I want to talk about the future a little bit."_

_Zoe felt a shiver begin in the back of her throat but she pushed it down for the sake of her mother, whose hopeful eyes were making her own water._

_"Okay," she said softly, moving closer to the bed. The chair was uncomfortable so she leaned her arms forward on the soft comforter._

_"I want you to be happy, Zoe," she said, reaching her hand forward to catch Zoe's fingers. "I want you to do what makes you happy and surround yourself with people that make you happy." She stopped to cough, making Zoe cling tighter to her fingers. She calmed down for a moment, her eyes glassy. "It doesn't make sense to me...people that settle for less. You need to speak up when you have to, because you deserve the best." _

_"I will," Zoe choked out, unable to fathom that her mother was giving her advice for a time when she would not be a part of her life, a time that was coming soon. Her brain was spinning and oddly clear at the same time. _

_"I've always wanted my own bakery. And a little boy," her mother said, sighing. Her eyes found the ceiling now, and Zoe wished she had painted pictures up there. Her mother spent too much time looking at it now. "I don't want you to regret things like I did, on your death bed."_

_"I won't."_

_"Promise me," her mother insisted, her eyes finding Zoe's once more._

_Zoe gulped._

_"I promise."_

* * *

Zoe shook herself from the memory as the werewolf leaped at her sister. Melody had pulled their car to the side so they were on the edge of the woods. If someone drove by, Zoe wasn't sure what they would think, or what they would do. She wasn't sure what to do herself.

Zoe flinched at the first shot fired. She watched the werewolf rear back in pain, making a noise somewhere between a growl and a yelp. It had hit his shoulder in his bad arm and she almost wanted to shake Melody. Was she trying to make him angrier?

Unfortunately the shot wasn't enough to stop him. One arm or not, he was advancing again.

Melody pulled out something Zoe hadn't seen, a long black object that was dancing with light. Zoe squinted, leaning forward in her seat. She felt like she was watching a scene in a movie, except this was her sister, her only sister, and she was in danger and there was only a windshield between her and a monster that could kill her with one swipe. Plus, there was no popcorn.

She gulped and leaned back, reminding herself that she could die here, and it was no time to think stupid things.

Melody extended the weapon toward the werewolf and Zoe suddenly saw what it did. Electricity pumped into his body, making him quake as he slouched to the ground in agony. He twitched continually as Melody took a breath of air and wiped her face, watching his dark head convulse as she did it again. Zoe remembered the dislocating feeling of putting her finger in a socket and felt oddly aware of her limbs.

She had looked away, just for one moment. Her hand found her cell phone and dialed before she had time to think about it.

* * *

_"Promise me one more thing."_

_Zoe was crying now, unable to help it. She blinked through the water until her mother became less blurry, but she couldn't stop it entirely._

_"What?"_

_"Take care of your sister."_

_Zoe's mother had been lucid today, but now she wondered if she thought she was talking to Melody instead. She must have caught the look on Zoe's face because she chuckled—a sound that made Zoe's heart tighten._

_"I know," she chided, huffing a bit. "She's older. And she's—" she coughed again, "...going to think that she is taking care of you. But sometimes it's the strong ones that need the most help."_

_"I've always been the little sister," Zoe said, looking at their hands and thinking of the times that Melody had bossed her around or drove her to school or spoke for her._

_"You'll come to an age where older and younger doesn't matter, and you'll just be sisters," her mother said, smiling now. "Melody has and always will need you. Don't forget that."_

* * *

The werewolf had recovered. After a few faulty swipes, and a lot more gunfire, he had gotten a good hit in. Zoe felt her pores open in worry as claws found her sister's arm, leaving a trail of tattered fabric and blood in their wake.

Crimson Lake.

Zoe almost cried out as the werewolf hit her sister again. Now both of her arms were injured and she struggled to hold up the gun that was now her only defense. Blood dripped down to her fingertips as she fired one into his stomach, halting him for a moment. Zoe knew—and Melody too, from the look of her face—that this wouldn't do.

He went for her legs now. It was clear he wasn't going to kill her quickly. He slashed across her knees, making her cry out and fall to the ground. More blood appeared. Zoe felt fear in places she didn't know she had, like the back of her ears and the end of her fingertips.

She had to do _something_. She couldn't just watch another person in her life die.

She looked at the taser in her lap. She took a deep breath that did not calm her, shook her legs that did not steady, and wiped her hands that did not dry.

_Melody has and always will need you._

She never believed it before, but maybe it was true now.

She exited the car with an uninspiring lack of grace. She wasn't sure if the werewolf had known she was there before, but he certainly did now.

"Zoe, get back in the car!"

"I can get through car," the werewolf hissed, and Zoe almost ran back. She hadn't heard him speak until now, and for some reason, that dose of human in him made her feel worse.

Feeling cold in every part of her body, she pushed her legs forward anyway.

"Zoe! Leave!"

The werewolf changed tactics now. Zoe wasn't sure how he was thinking, but maybe he realized that hurting Zoe would hurt Melody, too. Zoe didn't really account for this.

She aimed her taser as the werewolf reached her in lightning speed, pressing the button with more force than she probably needed to. Her adrenaline was pumping, so even though she felt like vomiting and running and maybe peeing her pants, she felt oddly alive and aware and sharp even in the growing darkness.

The werewolf ducked it.

Zoe's eyes grew wide. She certainly hadn't accounted for that. Instead of buying time for Melody, she was just losing time for herself.

She closed her eyes and prepared to die as the huge body leaped for hers.

The werewolf knocked her to the ground. She felt the cold earth meet her body and wondered how dirt could be so hard. Pain exploded down her spine, lacing her back in angry tendrils that made her eyes blur. How odd, to have so many body parts and not know they're there all the time until each one of them hurts.

He smelled like blood and wet leaves, although she wasn't really sure she knew how either of those things smelled. His eyes were brighter up close...maybe more Yellow Chartreuse. She felt him run his claws over her shirt on her stomach, tearing the fabric but not quite her skin.

He was messing around with her.

"Get away from her!"

Melody's voice was strong, but Zoe knew she was out of bullets.

"Your fight is with me!"

The werewolf grinned now, or what Zoe imagined was a grin, but it came out all sharp teeth. She don't know why that did it, but she suddenly had the strong impulse to fight back. It was not a good time to die, on the eve of new things happening in her life. She didn't want to die stuck on _almosts_ and _never was-es_ like her mother-she wanted to die with _afters_.

She thrust her legs upward.

But the werewolf was too strong—even with one missing forearm, his legs held her in place. She had merely jostled him, and now he was just angry she had moved. He growled and pushed a muscular hand on her wrist, drawing a sharp crack.

Zoe's wrist exploded. Or at least, that's what it felt like. She didn't know why people said white hot pain appeared, because if she had to guess this pain was radiating black and yellow and electric blue and every other piercing color of a thunderstorm.

She vaguely saw Melody drew her other weapon again, ready to electrocute him.

Zoe wondered if the shocks would spread to her. Would it feel any worse than the pain traveling up her arm?

Just as Melody raised her hand, a sparkling arrow sliced through the air. The werewolf reared backward, the shaft protruding from his chest. Before he could move, another arrow buried itself beside its twin, and then a third from where Zoe imagined his heart was.

_Allison._

She couldn't think of anyone else to call. She wasn't even sure if it was her, or if she had sent her father, but someone was here.

Maybe they wouldn't have to die.

With that thought in mind, Zoe allowed her mind to drift, and the pain disappeared when her eyes closed.

* * *

**Quick update because you guys rocked with reviews last time! Thanks to everyone, especially guests who I can't message back. Virtual love to you all.**


	9. Chapter 9

Zoe was hurt because of her. Zoe was in the hospital because of her. White walls, white floors. Melody couldn't even see faces, she just saw scrubs darting past her, on their way to fix emergencies.

Her sister was in the hospital because of her.

She hated hospitals, since her mother, but for some reason her mind kept drifting back to the last time she'd been in one.

_There was a knock at her door. Nobody knocked at her door—even people preaching things, because she was on the third floor and they usually didn't make it past the second. It could be Zoe, but she had keys and she wasn't supposed to be home from the coffee shop for another hour._

_Frowning, Melody picked herself off the couch and went toward the door. She had no peephole—something she'd been hoping to remedy—so she opened it just a crack._

_She saw his tired eyes first—the same brownish green that Zoe's were, but with more lines at the creases. His hair had started to gray at the temples, and stuck up in the back. He needed a haircut, and a shower. Melody felt her anger stick in her throat like a tangible object, the same way it always did when she saw his face._

_"Is Zoe here?"_

_His voice was hoarse, and she vaguely wondered why. She rolled her eyes, surprised he'd even noticed her absence at all. _

_"Zoe's been living here for a week," Melody said, crossing her arms. "And she's going to stay here from now on."_

_"So she's leaving me too?"_

_"You left us a long time ago."_

_"My wife died."_

_"Our mother died. That's no excuse to give up," Melody argued. She felt her hands clenching into fists and clamped them down even harder._

_"I'm trying now." His voice shook as much as his hands._

_"You don't even have a job," Melody said, narrowing her eyes. "You barely buy groceries. You make small talk, but you mostly give empty promises and ignore her. She already lost Mom, she needs someone stable in her life."_

_"I'm pulling it together," her dad said, inching forward, "My buddy lined up a job for me."_

_"You got arrested a week ago!" Melody yelled. She thought of all the things swirling through her when Zoe had told her that he was led away in handcuffs. She thought about slamming the door, but for some stupid reason she wanted to see what he was going to say._

_"I know," he said simply, looking at the floor._

_"There's going to be a trial," Melody continued._

_"I know that, too." _

_"Are you going to take Zoe to lockup with you?" Melody asked sarcastically._

_"Zoe is all I have left." He sighed, running a hand over his face._

_"What about me?" Melody asked. She could hear the quiver in her own voice and immediately clenched her jaw to stop it. _

_"What about you?" her father spat, waving his arms. "When have you __**ever**__ needed me? When have you ever addressed me with anything except sarcasm? You talk down to me like a child. If you remember, I am your __**father**__!"_

_Melody raised her eyes to lock onto his._

_"I don't have a father."_

_And it was then that Melody saw emotion on her father's face—something she hadn't seen in a long time. His features flickered with hurt, and then quickly turned into the sharpness of anger that she was so familiar with. Scowling he reared back. Melody flinched, expecting a blow, but she heard a sharp crack and saw that his fist had hit the wall._

_Plaster shattered to the floor, sprinkling the dark brown carpet with white ash. Her father let out a sound of pain through his teeth, cradling his hand to his chest._

_She was almost excited for a moment. Excited that he was passionate enough about something to actually exert some force, make a decision that wasn't placid and dull. But it was gone quickly—the spark in his eye—replaced with resignation._

_He slumped against the wall. Blood had started leaking from his knuckles down his pale white hands. Soon it would reach the sleeves of his old, plaid shirt._

_"Let's go to the hospital," she said, sighing as she grabbed her keys from the table by the door._

_He mutely followed._

* * *

Zoe cast was purple and her brain was fuzzy, but at least her arm wasn't being stabbed with jolts of pain anymore. She focused on the purple and tried to convince herself it reminded her more of flowers than Barney, but she wasn't doing a great job avoiding the doctor's halted questions and Melody's stare.

When she came to in back of Mr. Argent's car, she had been informed to say she was in a car accident—Melody had swerved to miss an animal and hit a tree. She got scrapes and Zoe's wrist got jarred on impact.

Zoe nodded dumbly but Mel shook her to make sure she agreed, flaring up the pain in her wrist until she managed to croak out a reply. Like she was going to say they got attacked by a werewolf. She didn't need a pysch evaluation on top of everything, although she was starting to think she may need one anyway.

Melody had stooped like a vulture outside of her x-ray room, and now in the corner where she was being mummified, her eyes narrowed and her lips thin. Zoe wasn't sure if Melody was angry at herself or angry at Zoe, but she decided to wait until her mind was loopier to ask. It's much harder to care when they put the nice, soothing drugs in your system.

She had been thinking about the werewolf's hot breath and Allison's grim face beside her in the back seat, but faded back into awareness when the doctor addressed a comment toward her.

"Your shirt got pretty cut up," the doctor announced, looking at her with his barely-there blonde eyebrows raised. He was pretty young, as doctors go, and a little more suspicious than the slow moving technician that x-rayed her.

"She got it caught on a twisted piece of the door," Melody interjected.

"How many times?" the doctor asked, his voice not unkind but definitely not convinced.

"I was a little woozy," Zoe added, trying to sound a little dazed before realizing she probably didn't need to try.

"And it was a tree? Why did you swerve?"

"A deer. You know how those roads are, with trees all around," Melody supplied.

The doctor pondered this for a moment, his hands still. Zoe held her breath until he nodded.

"You should have called an ambulance," he chided, cutting off a hanging piece of gauze. Zoe read his ID—Dr. Murray. "That's what they're there for."

"Our friend was following us, saw the whole thing," Melody insisted, "It was quicker to go with him."

Dr. Murray pressed his lips together but didn't say anything else. Patting her good shoulder, he leaned away from her.

"Are you right handed?" he asked, pushing back his curls of light hair. He probably sensed that Zoe was a little shaken up, because his voice was considerably softer than it was when he was talking to Melody.

"Yes."

"Good. So you'll still be able to take notes in school." He paused for a moment, rubbing his forehead. "Did I really just say that? Like that is a teenage girl's biggest concern."

"Don't worry, you're talking to a very abnormal teenage girl," Zoe insisted, smiling at him. "There's been talk of kicking me out of the club."

Melody snorted in the corner, rolling her eyes as he smiled.

"Good to know." Dr. Murray smiled as he grabbed her file on the adjacent metal table and looked it over once before looking back at her.

"You'll have to keep the cast on for six weeks," he told her. "We'll take another x-ray then to make sure everything's healed properly. I'll also write you a prescription for the pain."

"Great," Zoe said, her arm a dull ache now. "Thank you."

"You have to get checked out too," he said, whirling around to face Melody. "Don't think I haven't seen those cuts."

"It's nothing—"

"—No arguments. Sometimes the injuries that seem small are the worst. Hop up."

Zoe would've taken satisfaction in someone ordering Melody around, but she was too tired to have a full appreciation. Plus, her mind was still swimming with curiosity and anxiety and you know, overall fear of the supernatural that was creeping from the pages of her books into her life.

"Wait outside, Zoe," Melody said, nodding her head toward the door.

* * *

Zoe and her purple cast found the waiting room. She had been hoping that Allison would be there to answer some of her questions, but all she saw was a tall, bearded man waiting in a small hospital chair. She was going to choose the furthest seat away from him when he grinned at her, gesturing her over.

"Hey." His voice wasn't as deep as she expected. "I'm your sister's friend, Mark."

He held out a hand for her to shake. Zoe's hand was small and pale against his skin, and she could tell he was strong even though he barely gripped her fingers. Melody had never mentioned him, but then again, she wasn't mentioning a lot these days.

"Zoe."

"I know."

Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Zoe nodded and took the chair beside him. Hopefully Dr. Murray would be quick with examining Melody. Zoe wanted to climb into her bed. It might not smell like home, but it was better than this hospital that was all washed out lighting and chemical smells.

"Purple," Mark suddenly noted, looking down at her cast. "Very royal, princess."

"Oh...uh, yeah," Zoe stuttered. She was unsure of what to say to this man who was treating her like he knew her and smiling at her in a way that she wasn't sure was sincere or not.

"Does it hurt?" he asked, twisting his body to face her.

"Not really," she said, looking at her arm. "They gave me some medication."

He nodded, twisting again so he was facing forward. They sat this way for a few moments, Zoe's nerves on edge. She just wanted to leave this place. If her sister was going to be entangled with monsters and the strange people that hunted them...fine. But she didn't have to be involved.

Zoe hoped the silence would remain, even if it was a bit awkward. She felt her eyelids drooping as more time passed without words. But Mark had another idea, and just when her eyes almost closed, he spoke.

"That was brave of you," Mark commented. "To go out there with no training. Stupid...but brave."

"Uh, thanks. I guess," Zoe said, shrugging her good shoulder.

"Have you ever considered it?"

"What?"

"Being a hunter."

Zoe's eyes snapped to his dark brown ones. His eyebrows were raised, giving them a humorous look, but this was anything but a funny conversation.

"Me?" she asked slowly.

"Yes, you." He paused, seeming thoughtful as he scratched the scruff of his beard. "A little young, but that doesn't seem to stop the Argents...and we need all the people we can get."

"Oh, no..." Zoe shook her head.

"If you're anything like your sister, you'd be a natural."

"Melody couldn't handle it today," Zoe pointed out, trying not to think of what would happen if the Argents hadn't showed up. "And I'm nothing like my sister."

Mark looked at her for a moment. He didn't say anything, so Zoe chose to elaborate.

"I'm not good...with coordination. I prefer art. And reading. You know—stationary activities."

"Sounds a bit like you're scared," he commented, smirking at her.

"Scared of werewolves? Yes, I am. I'd be insane not to be," she said, rolling her eyes. For some reason, she wasn't afraid to speak to him anymore. Maybe because she wanted him to drop that stupid smirk.

"They're not so bad when you learn how to deal with them," Mark said, licking his lips. "You know how he pinned you down? If you leveraged your weight—"

"Leave her alone, Mark," Melody's voice cut in.

Zoe looked up in relief to see her sister. Her stomach was turning. Mark's words were making images of yellow orbs and ragged hands flash on the backs of her eyelids and she wasn't really ready to deal with that yet. In fact, she was hoping she could pretend it had never happened.

Whatever Mark was saying was lost. He smiled up at Melody even though her voice held icicles, giving her a once over.

"I was just making conversation," he said, his voice dropping. "How are you?"

"Fine. Let's go," Melody said, already walking toward the exit.

"Great girl, your sister," Mark commented dryly, shaking out his legs as he rose from the chair. "Particularly elegant conversation skills."

"Oh, uh..." Zoe trailed off, getting up from her own chair. She cradled her sling close to her as she began to walk toward Melody.

"See?" Mark smiled, putting a hand on her back. "You _do_ take after her."

* * *

Zoe was tired all night but she couldn't fall asleep without falling into nightmares. She tossed and turned and stared at the ceiling and even cried a little bit before giving up. She read as the sun was rising and then decided to try and make herself presentable.

It turned out this was pretty hard. She wasn't very good at doing her hair even with two hands, and with one it was almost impossible. She managed to make it lie flat on her head, but she was sure it would be frizzy in about ten minutes. Putting in her contacts turned out to be pretty hard too, so she stuck with her glasses for the day.

She almost cared, but she took a pain pill and decided to walk it off.

"My car is at the Argents," Melody said, looking up from a cup of coffee as Zoe moped into the room. "You can stay home from school today."

"I don't want to sit around all day," Zoe said, opening one of the cabinets. The knob was loose and she almost pulled it off in the process.

"Did you sleep?"

"Not much."

"I think you should just stay home, and rest...you can watch TV."

"We don't have cable," Zoe muttered.

"You can watch a movie," Melody insisted.

"I don't want to miss school," Zoe argued back. "I'm already behind."

"Fine," Melody said, taking the last sip of her coffee. "Good. Maybe it's better that way. Can you call Allison for a ride?"

"It's okay, I like walking," Zoe said, giving up on finding anything edible for breakfast and shutting the cabinet.

She began to walk away when she heard Melody's chair scrape against the linoleum.

"Zoe?"

"Yeah?" she asked, twisting back to face her.

"I'm sorry."

Zoe let the words hang in the air for a moment. She swallowed and nodded, figuring that Melody must have been mad at herself after all.

"I just don't want to live with Aunt Martha and Number Five," Zoe said, giving her a small smile.

"I'll be more careful," Melody promised, bowing her head.

Zoe nodded and grabbed her backpack from the kitchen chair.

The walk to school was quiet. She remembered what Isaac said, about not liking silence. She didn't really agree a few days ago, but now she did. Her mind was too loud...she needed a distraction.

She tried to think about school, and if she could finish her history homework at lunch, but that only depressed her more. So instead, she focused on the colors of the trees here, and her red sneakers, and imagined somebody drawing them.

Finally, she reached school, and as if someone heard her thoughts, Lydia appeared.

As good a distraction as any.

Lydia looked like she might walk past her, but she paused at the last minute, looking her up and down.

"Oh, New Girl, what are you doing to me?"

Lydia looked tired, but only in her expression. Zoe knew she looked tired down to her bones. Lydia was focusing on something above Zoe's head, causing her to frown and pat her hairline.

"What?" Zoe asked, frowning and trying in vain to look where Lydia was.

"Your hair..._really_?"

Zoe felt simultaneously annoyed and relieved—at least at school she wouldn't have to deal with problems of great magnitude. She felt her mood lighten.

"Hey, I have one hand if you didn't notice," Zoe pointed out. "On a scale of one to Hermione, how does it look?"

Lydia fixed her with a look that was the very opposite of amused.

"I'd say...Prisoner of Azkaban," a voice said from behind her.

Zoe grinned widely as Stiles came to stand next to her.

"I can live with anything past Chamber of Secrets," she told him, causing him to smile back.

"Oh god, there's two of them," Lydia said, rolling her eyes. "I have to find Allison. You two...continue talking about Lord of the Rings."

"Harry Potter," Zoe and Stiles corrected at the same time.

"Whatever!" Lydia called, already walking away.

"She's sweet," Zoe said sarcastically, turning back to Stiles.

"She knows what we were talking about," Stiles explained, shoving his hands in his pockets. "She just wants to seem like she doesn't."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, she's like that, sometimes. A lot. All the time. Well, most of the time," Stiles rambled a bit before taking a breath. "Sorry. I guess I'm just saying, don't feel bad. I actually think she likes you."

Zoe's mind was clicking into place as Stiles talked about Lydia, but she just smiled at him. She was sure she should probably hate Lydia on some level, but she really couldn't bring herself to. There was something about her bluntness that was refreshing. Something told her Stiles agreed.

"She calls me New Girl," Zoe reminded him flatly, a smirk on her lips.

"Yeah well—hey, what happened to your arm?"

In hindsight, Zoe realized purple was probably a bad choice. Her plaid shirt sleeve had bunched up, exposing the bright color underneath.

"Oh, uh, car accident, nothing major though."

Zoe's mood descended again. Stiles was always so nice to her. It seemed wrong to lie to him, even though the truth would probably send him running the opposite direction. She supposed she couldn't exactly go around telling every person secrets just because they would have a conversation with her.

"Yikes. You feel okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." As she spoke, the bell rang, jarring them both for a second. "Although I'm already starting to regret that I didn't just skip today," Zoe said, hiking her backpack up her right arm.

"We'll develop a signal," Stiles told her, as they both started walking up the stairs. "If you want me to make a distraction in chemistry so we can get out of class, look bored."

"I always look bored in chemistry."

"I know," Stiles said, "I wanted to make sure we'd _have _to use this plan."

Zoe laughed and followed him.

* * *

To add to Zoe's bad day of practically sleepwalking through school, Isaac was absent. To add a little more onto it, a story of how she broke her wrist had also spread through school. She only caught snippets, but so far it involved drunk driving, a fight with Jessica, and the boyfriend she'd had to run away from when she moved here.

She hated being new almost as much as she hated this day.

She ran for the doors after art class. It was hard for her to draw with one arm, but Mr. F had let her take it easy for the day. Shooting him a smile, she jetted for her locker, managed to avoid Jessica, and slipped out the front doors before the crowds got too heavy.

Allison intercepted her on the way home.

They didn't really have a chance to talk all day, and for some reason Zoe now felt awkward about it. Allison had saved her life and she couldn't even get one punch in.

"Hey, how are you?" Allison asked, bowing her head as if someone would even know what they were talking about.

"Well, one very good thing happened because of this," Zoe said, gesturing to her arm. "I get to sit out of gym. Kind of makes it worth it, if we're being honest."

Allison smiled at her but it was quickly replaced with a more serious look.

"I'm okay." Zoe assured her with a deep breath. "Except for the pain in my arm and the lying to everyone."

"Sorry." Allison bit her lip and started to walk forward. "It gets easier."

"The lying?" Zoe asked, following her.

"Yeah, I mean...obviously you don't want to lie. But it's not something you can really avoid."

Zoe looked at the field in the distance. The lacrosse team was going to be on it in a few minutes. She wished she was just a normal teenager whose biggest concern was winning a stupid game.

"I didn't sign up for this," Zoe said, glumly. "I'm not...good at it."

Allison was quiet for a minute.

"My parents...don't really tolerate weakness," Allison said. Her voice was quiet, and she pushed a piece of hair from her face. "When I started putting the pieces of everything together...I felt so scared."

"But now?" Zoe asked, a strange sensation bubbling in her stomach.

"Now it's normal for me," Allison said, shaking her head. "Now I'm getting prepared. You can only eliminate weakness if you learn how to be strong."

"Oh god, you're not going to suggest I become a hunter too, are you?" Zoe asked, running a hand over her face. Was this some sort of weird recruitment program?

"No, no," Allison said, the lightness in her voice filtering back. "I was just thinking I could teach you some self-defense. You're in this world now, whether you like it or not. So if there's a next time..."

"I'll be more prepared," Zoe finished, looking at the girl next to her. She seemed so prim and perfect on the outside, it was interesting to know the complexity underneath. "That would help, I think."

"Good," Allison said, smiling at her.

They had stopped walking near the lacrosse field. Zoe could see the team starting to emerge from the locker rooms.

"Hey Allison?"

"Yeah?"

"Did they..." Zoe swallowed. It was the question bubbling inside her all day. "Did they kill him?"

Allison's mouth opened for a moment. She shut it quickly before tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah," she nodded. "They did."

"Okay." Zoe breathed. She felt relieved and a little bit anxious. "Okay. Well at least I don't have to deal with werewolves for a while."

Allison was about to say something when a voice interrupted them.

"Hey guys!"

Zoe saw Scott wave at them with his lacrosse gloves on. She waved back but couldn't really muster a smile. Allison got a strange look on her own face before waving timidly.

Zoe was about to say good-bye to Allison when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to see a familiar tall figure.

"Isaac!"

Isaac grinned sheepishly at her. He had shadows under her eyes, but from her quick once over she couldn't see any other symptoms that would keep him out of school.

"Hey, I didn't know you wore glasses," he said.

"I went blind from an early age," Zoe said with a smile.

He smiled and glanced down for a second, and that was enough. His eyes grew wider as he pointed to her wrist.

"What happened to your arm?"

"You don't want to know," Zoe attempted to joke. If there was anyone she didn't want to lie to, it was him.

"Really," Isaac said softly, his hands reaching out. For a second she thought he would touch her, but he seemed to notice and pulled them back to his sides.

"Wolf attack?"

Allison sputtered a cough behind her and she gave her a wide eyed look as she inched away.

"Car accident," Zoe corrected, averting her eyes.

"I miss one day and you get yourself into trouble," Isaac said, giving her a small smile.

"Yeah, you really need to show up from now on."

Zoe didn't have time to be embarrassed. She wondered if the pills she'd popped at lunch were making her tongue looser.

"I will."

Before she knew what was happening, she felt Isaac's arms around her. She forgot how to use her arms...or any of her limbs, for that matter, but once his hands touched her back, thankfully her senses kicked back in.

She wrapped her one good arm around him. He smelled like shampoo and grass, and he was warm, and she was touching him, and her heart forgot the rhythm it was supposed to beat to.

He let go too soon, probably because an hour would have been too soon, and smiled down at her, a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Let's go! Is this lacrosse practice or social hour?"

They both turned to face the Coach, who was looking around at his players with a scowl. Zoe thought he had crazy eyes, and probably shouldn't push him.

"You should go," Zoe said, looking back at Isaac.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Feel better."

With that, he jogged toward the field where the rest of the team was already getting their helmets on. She watched number fourteen disappear into the huddle and was suddenly very angry that lacrosse existed.

She slowly turned away and saw her dark haired friend giving her a very knowing look. Whoops. Zoe had forgotten Allison was there at all. She was most definitely turning a nice shade of Carmine Red as Allison walked to stand in front of her.

"Who was that?" Allison asked, smirking at her.

"We eat lunch together," Zoe said quickly.

"Is that all you do together?" Allison asked, a smile forming on her lips. "I can't believe you've been keeping that from me! That hurts, Zoe."

"We're just friends," Zoe insisted.

"Uh-huh."

"We are."

Allison tilted her head back and laughed, linking arms with her as they started to walk away.

"Keep it down, Argent."

* * *

**So this one wasn't super action packed, but it was necessary.**

**Thanks so much to poorxbrokexcollegexkid, WhatsGoingOn, dwarfgalaxy, LynZann and cheapxperfume for reviewing last chapter!**

**This one was way longer than usual. Do you guys like longer chapters? **


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